Barbecue grilling is a popular method for cooking food. However, when natural lighting becomes dim, such as at night cooking on an outside barbecue grill becomes less desirable, as it is more difficult to see the grilling surface. Such drawbacks increase in the fall and winter months when daylight shortens and it gets dark earlier.
Several attempts have been made to overcome this drawback of barbecue grills. One such device is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,524,980 entitled "Gas Light--Gas Grill Combination." The '980 device however is considerably larger than the gas grill thus making it undesirable in certain settings. Further, the '980 device is not portable as it is fixed in a single location, thus also making it undesirable in certain settings. Further yet, light generated by the '980 apparatus is undesirably cast upon the grilling surface only when the upper housing is open, thus rendering any windows in the upper housing for permitting an operator to view therethrough when closed, inoperable at night-time.
Another device aimed at resolving the aforementioned drawback of typical barbecue grills is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,169, entitled "Barbecue Grill Lighting Apparatus." However, the '169 device is positioned adjacent to an external handle coupled to the upper housing of the barbecue grill. Accordingly, such a device cannot be utilized with barbecue grills which do not have a hinged upper housing. Further, the '169 apparatus undesirably requires manual operation of a generator by a user, and can interfere with the handle to which it has been attached. Further, light generated by the '169 apparatus is again undesirably cast upon the grilling surface only when the upper housing is open, again rendering any windows in the upper housing for permitting an operator to view therethrough when closed, inoperable at nighttime. Also, the '169 device must be removed when not in use, or else be unprotected against the weather.
Yet another device intended to overcome lighting deficiency with barbecue grills is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,664,875, entitled "Barbecue Grill Light." However, the '875 device undesirably renders a portion of a platform board adjacent to the gas barbecue grill unusable. Further, light generated by '875 apparatus is again undesirably cast upon the grilling surface only when the upper housing is open, rendering any windows in the upper housing for permitting an operator to view therein when closed, inoperable at nighttime. Further, the '875 apparatus requires additional supply of electrical power to operate it. Also, the '875 device must be removed when not in use, or else be unprotected against the weather. All of these deficiencies again make the '875 device undesirable in certain circumstances.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to sufficiently illuminate the cooking, or grilling, surface of a gas grill at night time such that an operator may utilize the gas grill with greater ease. It is a further object of the present invention to provide such illumination with an apparatus sufficiently protected from the weather such that when not in use it does not need to be removed. It is a further object of the invention that this apparatus be effective when a grill top is either open or closed, and that it can be adapted to a grill not having an upper housing. It is a further object of the invention that it not effect the portability of grills which have incorporated it.